Johnny Adams

Simply one of the greatest male voices ever caught on tape. Adams was known as "the Tan Canary" for his extraordinary set of soulfully soaring pipes. Adams sang gospel professionally before crossing over to the secular world in 1959. Songwriter Dorothy LaBostrie convinced her neighbor, Adams, to record her "I Won't Cry" produced by Mac Rebbennack (Dr. John) for Ric Records. The single was a regional hit, followed by a couple others like "A Losing Battle". There were no more hits from 1962 until 1968 when Adams released a knockout version of "Release Me" that cracked the R & B Top 40 and even made the pop charts at #82. There were some other charters but Adams never enjoyed the breakout success he deserved although the country-soul classic "Reconsider Me" made the R&B Top Ten. From 1970 onward Adams recorded sparingly until being signed by Rounder Records in 1984. From there he released a steady stream of quality discs ranging between jazz, blues, soul and jazzy-soul. He died of cancer in 1998

Album Discography

"Heart & Soul" (SSS 1969, Vampi Soul 2005)

1.Georgia Morning Dew
2.In A Moment Of Weakness
3.Real Live Living Hurtin' Man
4.Lonely Man
5.I Won't Cry
6.Release Me
7.Kiss The Hurt Away *
8.Too Much Pride *
9.I Don't Worry Myself *
10.Proud Woman
11.I Can't Be All Bad
12.Losing Battle
13.Living On Your Love
14.Reconsider Me
15.You Made A New Man Of Me *
16.I Want To Walk Through This Life With You *
17.If I Could See you One More Time *
18.South Side Of Soul Street *

* 2006 bonus tracks

"I Won't Cry" (Ric 1971; Rounder 1992)

1. I Won't Cry, (Oh Why)
2. Life Is a Struggle
3. Losing Battle, A
4. Nowhere to Go
5. Oh So Nice
6. I Want to Do Everything For You
7. You Can Make It If You Try
8. Teach Me to Forget
9. Let the Winds Blow
10. I Solemnly Promise
11. Who Are You
12. Come On
13. Someone For Me
14. Lonely Drifter

"A Christmas With Johnny Adams (Ace 1975)

1. Silent Night
2. O Little Town of Bethlehem
3. Lord's Prayer, The
4. Silver Bells
5. Christmas Song, The
6. Little Boy That Santa Forgot, The
7. This Christmas
8. Lonesome Christmas
9. Bells of St. Mary's, The
10. White Christmas
11. Please Come Home for Christmas

"Stand By Me" (Chelsea/Hep Me 1976)

1.Stand By Me
2.Your Love Is All I Need
3.Baby, Baby I Love You
4.Nothing Takes The Place Of You
5.Share Your Love With Me
6.I'll Never Fall In Love Again
7.Who Will The Next Fool Be?
8.I Don't Wanna Cry
9.Give Me A Chance
10.Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You

"After All The Good Is Gone" (Ariola 1978)

Track List Needed

"The Many Sides Of Johnny Adams" (Hep Me 1981)

Track List Needed

"The Sweet Country Voice Of Johnny Adams" (Hep Me 1983)

Track List Needed

"Old Flames" (P-Vine 1984)

Track List Needed

"The Tan Nightingale" (Charly 1985)

Track List Needed

"From The Heart" (Rounder 1984)

1. I Felt Like Breaking up Somebody's Home
2. Why Do I
3. Laughin' and Clownin'
4. If I Ever Had a Good Thing
5. Scarred Knees
6. From the Heart
7. Your Love Is So Doggone Good
8. We Don't See Eye to Eye
9. Roadblock
10. Teach Me to Forget

"After Dark" (Rounder 1985)

1. Lovers Will
2. I Don't Know You
3. Fortune Teller
4. Missing You
5. Do Right Woman, Do Right Man
6. Give a Broken Heart a Break
7. She Said the Same Things to Me
8. Garbage Man
9. Dancing Man
10. Snap Your Fingers

"Room With A View Of The Blues" (Rounder 1987)

1. Room With a View
2. I Don't Want to Do Wrong
3. Not Trustworthy (A Lyin' Woman)
4. Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First...)
5. How Wrong Can a Good Man Be
6. Body and Fender Man
7. I Owe You
8. Wish I'd Never Loved You at All
9. Hunt Is On, The
10. World I Never Made

"Walking On A Tightrope" (Rounder 1989)

1. Walking on a Tightrope
2. Lost Mind
3. Stand By
4. My Heart Is Hangin' Heavy
5. Danger Zone
6. Never No More
7. Lover and the Married Woman, The
8. You're in For a Big Surprise
9. Look the Whole World Over
10. Baby Please

"The Real Me: Johnny Adams Sings Doc Pomus" (Rounder 1991)

1. Imitation of Love
2. Still in Love
3. There Is Always One More Time
4. My Baby's Quit Me
5. She's Everything to Me
6. I Underestimated You
7. Blinded by Love
8. Prisoner of Life
9. Night Is a Hunter, The
10. No One
11. Real Me

"Greatest Performance" (Ace 1993)

1. Performance
2. Feeling
3. After All the Love Is Gone
4. Greatest Love, The
5. Shoulder to Cry On, A
6. Love Me Tender
7. Oh Yes I Cheated
8. Closer to You
9. Sharing You
10. It's You Baby
11. Baby, I Want You
12. Feel the Beat
13. Stairway to Heaven
14. Love Letters
15. Best of Luck to You
16. Think About You
17. Struttin' on Sunday
18. Turning Point

"Good Morning Heartache" (Rounder 1993)

1. You Don't Know What Love Is
2. I Just Found Out About Love
3. Don't Go to Strangers
4. Jealous Kind, The
5. I Hadn't Anyone 'Til You
6. Come Rain or Come Shine
7. Teach Me Tonight
8. Good Morning Heartache
9. Back to Normal
10. But Not For Me

"The Verdict" (Rounder 1995)

1. Blue Gardenia
2. Verdict, The
3. City Lights
4. Dreams Must Be Going Out of Style
5. Down That Lonely Lonely Road
6. I Cover the Waterfront
7. Love For Sale
8. You Always Knew Me Better
9. Lot of Living to Do, A
10. Willow Weep For Me
11. Come Home to Love
12. D Jam Blues

"Best Of New Orleans Rhythm & Blues" (Mardis Gras 1995)

17 tracks recorded with Senator Jones circa 1976 taken mostly from his "Stand By Me" album. Lots of fine renditions of R & B classics like "Stand By Me", "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You", "Tell It Like It Is" & "Nothing Takes The Place Of You". Of course some of the covers are superfluous. The discofied version of "Spanish Harlem" is particularly forgettable. The album is not polished- it almost seems like a jam session at times- a loose band feel, such as the wild "Stand By Me". Not perfect by any means but essential for fans of the "tan canary".

1. Tell It Like It Is
2. Who Will the Next Fool Be?
3. Stay With Me
4. Hell Yes, I Cheated
5. Baby I Love You
6. I'll Never Fall in Love Again
7. Your Love Is All I Need
8. Share Your Love With Me
9. Don't Let the Green Grass Fool You
10. Nothing Takes the Place of You
11. Give Me a Chance
12. I Only Want to Be With You
13. Love Me Now
14. One Fine Day
15. Stand by Me
16. Our Day Will Come
17. Spanish Harlem

"Reconsider Me" (Collectibles 1996)

18 tracks drawn from his 1962-1969 years with Shelby Singleton's SSS label. It shares the majority of it's tracks with "Heart & Soul" but is less preferred overall.

1. Reconsider Me
2. You Can Depend on Me
3. Kiss the Hurt Away
4. I Won't Cry
5. Proud Woman
6. Tender Side of Me, The
7. Release Me
8. Too Much Pride
9. Real Live Livin' Hurtin' Man
10. If I Could See You One More Time
11. I Can't Be All Bad
12. In a Moment of Weakness
13. I Don't Worry Myself
14. You Made a New Man Out of Me
15. Down by the River
16. Lonely Man
17. I Have No One
18. Losing Battle

"One Foot In The Blues" (Rounder 1996)

1. Won't Pass Me By
2. One Foot in the Blues
3. Baby Don't You Cry
4. Ill Wind
5. Roadblock
6. Angel Eyes
7. Half Awoke
8. I Wonder Where Our Love Has Gone
9. Two Years of Torture
10. Cookin' in Style
11. I Know What I've Got

"Man Of My Word" (Rounder 1998)

1. Even Now
2. It Ain't the Same Thing
3. This Time I'm Gone For Good
4. Going Out of My Mind Sale
5. Now You Know
6. Up and Down World
7. I Don't Want to Know
8. Man of My Word
9. You Don't Miss Your Water
10. Bulldog Breaks His Chain
11. It Tears Me Up
12. Looking Back
13. Never Alone

"The Immortal Soul Of" (Aim 1999)

Another collection of material recorded 1976-1983 with Senator Jones that shares tracks with "New Orleans Rhythm & Blues" and "Greatest Performance". The music here is mostly good of course but the package pales compared to those other releases and there's nothing covered here that was missed there. It's budget price makes for a good introduction to Johnny, however.

1. I Only Wanna Be With You
2. I'll Never Fall in Love Again
3. Love Me Now
4. Stairway to Heaven
5. Give Me a Chance
6. Turning Point
7. Who Will the Next Fool Be
8. Your Love Is All I Need
9. Stay With Me
10. Share Your Love
11. Closer to You
12. Sharing With You
13. Think About You
14. Don't Let the Green Grass Fool You
15. Spanish Harlem

"There Is Always One More Time" (Rounder 2000) LISTEN

This is a 15-track compilation of material he recorded for Rounder Records 1984-1998 and it could be considered a "best of" package. That's not to say this is the best of that period as the tracklist was careful to include at least one track from each of the 11 albums Adams cut for the label and that leaves some great ones out ("She's Everything To Me", "The Real Me", etc..). What it does include is a cross-section of Johnny's various styles. You have blues ("One Foot In The Blues"), deep soul ("Even Now"), jazz ("Walking On A Tight Rope"), standards ("But Not For Me"), cabaret ("A Lot Of Livin' To Do"), pop ("Lover's Will"), even gospel ("Never Alone" with Aaron Neville). Plus there's a few tracks not on any of his albums- "I Don't Know" with Ruth Brown, "I'll Only Miss Her When I Think Of Her" with Alvin "Red" Tyler" and the unreleased Doc Pomus/Dr. John song "Happy Hard Times".

1. I Feel Like Breaking up Somebody's Home
2. Happy Hard Times
3. I'll Only Miss Him When I Think of Him - (featuring Alvin "Red" Tyler)
4. I Don't Know - (featuring Ruth Brown)
5. Lovers Will
6. One Foot in the Blues
7. Even Now
8. Body and Fender Man
9. There Is Always One More Time
10. Walking on a Tightrope
11. I Don't Want to Do Wrong
12. Lot of Living to Do, A
13. Wish I'd Never Loved You at All
14. But Not For Me
15. Never Alone

"Absolutely The Best" (Fuel 2000)

1. I Won't Cry
2. I Can't Be All Bad
3. Release Me
4. Reconsider Me
5. You Made a New Man Out of Me
6. In a Moment of Weakness
7. I Want to Walk Through This Life With You
8. If I Could See You One More Time
9. South Side of Soul Street
10. Georgia Morning Dew
11. Real Live Living Hurtin' Man
12. Lonely Man
13. Proud Woman
14. Losing Battle, A
15. How Can I Prove I Love You
16. Tender Side of Me, The
17. Kiss the Hurt Away
18. You Can Depend on Me

"Released: A Memorial Album"(RPM 2001)

The most comprehensive of the many retrospectives released on Johnny Adams, this 24-track disc covers his work from 1968's "Release Me" to his Senator Jones material from 1983. While it does include his biggest hits ("Reconsider Me", "Release Me", "I Won't Cry") it's missing too many essential tracks from his 60s period (like "A Losing Battle") in place of some mediocre tracks from his late 70s period (like "Chasing Rainbows") so it's not definitive by any means. Still, there's outstanding songs and performances here and the album is terrific as it is. If you are hoping for the "ultimate Johnny Adams" compilation it hasn't materialized yet. Being that he recorded for almost four decades and the majority of his material was fabulous perhaps only a box set could do the trick.

1. Release Me
2. You Made a New Man Out of Me
3. I Won't Cry
4. In a Moment of Weakness
5. I Want to Walk Through This Life With You
6. Reconsider Me
7. If I Could See You One More Time
8. South Side of Soul Street
9. Georgia Morning Dew
10. Real Live Livin' Hurtin' Man
11. Lonely Man
12. Proud Woman
13. Losing Battle
14. How Can I Prove I Love You
15. You Can Depend on Me
16. Let Me Be Myself
17. It's Got to Be Something
18. Share Your Love With Me
19. Your Love Is All I Need
20. Stairway to Heaven
21. After All the Good Is Gone
22. Chasing Rainbows
23. Love Me Now
24. Hell Yes I Cheated

"The Great Johnny Adams Blues Album" (Rounder 2005) LISTEN

1. Not Trustworthy (A Lyin' Woman)
2. My Heart Is Hangin' Heavy
3. Laughin' and Clownin'
4. Danger Zone
5. Imitation of Love
6. Garbage Man
7. Roadblock
8. Scarred Knees
9. Fortune Teller
10. Room With a View
11. My Baby's Quit Me
12. This Time I'm Gone For Good

"The Great Johnny Adams R & B Album" (Rounder 2006)

1. I Need a Lot of Loving
2. From the Heart
3. You Don't Miss Your Water
4. She Said the Same Things to Me
5. I Feel Like Breaking up Somebody's Home
6. She's Everything to Me
7. Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)
8. Going Out of My Mind Sale
9. Jealous Kind, The
10. If I Ever Had a Good Thing
11. Won't Pass Me By
12. Still in Love

"An Introduction To Johnny Adams" (Varese 2006)

1. After All the Good Is Gone
2. Best of Luck to You, The
3. Don't Let the Green Grass Fool You
4. Your Love Is All I Need
5. Shoulder to Cry On, A
6. Who Will the Next Fool Be
7. Hell Yes I Cheated
8. I Only Want to Be with You
9. Give Me a Chance
10. Share Your Love with Me
11. Struttin' on Sunday
12. I'll Never Fall in Love Again
13. Love Letters
14. Thinking About You
15. Love Me Now
16. Sharing You